On Saturday, June 6, the Las Vegas Aces got their first regular season home win against their west coast rivals, the Golden State Valkyries. The win also puts them closer to the Commissioner’s Cup prize. With clutch bench players still out because of injury (Chennedy Carter and Dana Evans), it was the perfect time for Jackie Young (season-high 27 points) to clock in and light the court on fire. And that, she did. Along with a monster performance by A’ja Wilson (28 points, 14 rebounds) and a record-breaking game from Chelsea Gray (12 points, 6 assists), the Aces sneaked by with a win.
Early Lead Sparks the Crowd
The thrilling, high-stakes game came down to the wire despite the Aces starting out strong in the first quarter. Vegas wasted no time establishing an offensive rhythm in the first quarter. Wilson broke out of the back-and-forth scoring with a devastating 13-4 run. The arena was shaking with how loudly the crowd was cheering as she ignited the floor.
The Aces looked more efficient in the first quarter than any other as they shot an impressive 53.8% (7 of 13) from the field and dished out 7 assists. Meanwhile, the Valkyries looked a bit sluggish, struggling against the Aces’ offense. They shot just 30% from the floor, while Wilson single-handedly outscored them, putting up 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while no Golden State player managed more than 5. The MVP doing MVP things.
Valkyries Refused to Stay Down
Though Gray’s three-pointer extended the Aces lead, the Valkyries pushed back with back-to-back threes of their own. The two teams were evenly pacing back and forth, where Aces would surge ahead, but then the Valkyries would narrow the gap. When the Aces went cold in the third quarter, the Valkyries pounced, shooting 43.8%.
A confident Young kept the Aces afloat with 8 points, letting the Aces hold onto their lead as they headed into the final stretch. Watching Young closely, you could see the smile on her face as her teammates and the crowd erupted around her. Her zero-point game struggles seem to have come to an end. “At the end of the day, I’m human and we go through stuff. I don’t think it was necessarily a basketball thing; I’ve been putting in the work, always putting in the work,” Young said later in the postgame press conference.
Sealing the Victory
Nothing was quite as chaotic or palpitation-inducing than the fourth quarter. A frenetic back-and-forth happened as the Valkyries took the lead to start, with both teams trading blows. Young stepped up under pressure, drawing a foul on a three-point attempt and calmly sank all three free throws to cut the deficit to one. Between Wilson and Young, the Aces snatched back the lead for a final score of 84-79.
With no celebrations or ceremonies to start the game, the home game loss streak is over. Although there was a really sweet Alumni Recognition Day that happened during halftime, where the front office honors every woman who has played for the Utah Starzz, San Antonio Stars, or the Aces in the past. That type of celebration happening in the middle of the game seems to have no effect on the outcome, thankfully. The Aces have found their footing with their defensive play, while getting back to form on offense with Young stepping up.
The Aces stay in Las Vegas as they face the Seattle Storm on Monday, June 8 at 7 p.m. PDT.
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